Written and Directed by Hideaki Anno
Co-directed by Shinji Higuchi
Cast: Hiroki Hasegawa, Yutaka Takenouchi, Satomi Ishihara, Ren Ohsugi, Akira Emoto, Kengo Kôra, Mikako Ichikawa, Jun Kunimura, Pierre Taki, Mansai Nomura (Godzilla motion capture)
Soundtrack: Shiro Sagisu
Other than James Bond, it’s difficult to think of another film franchise that’s both as iconic and long-running as Godzilla (or Gojira, as the Japanese say).
The original 1954 classic, while an exciting monster (or Kaiju) movie, was also a solemn metaphor for the nuclear devastation suffered in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Somehow, over the next two decades, Godzilla went from villain to hero, and the films became campier and more outlandish (and, at times, literally children’s entertainment), until Toho put a pin in Big G after the failure of Terror of Mechagodzilla in 1975.
In 1984, to celebrate the franchise’s 30th anniversary, the studio brought him back with a bang with The Return of Godzilla (originally released in Japan as simply Godzilla, but known more colloquially by its American release name Godzilla 1985), which is perhaps the first example of what we call a “soft reboot” these days. Over the course of another decade, Godzilla would run the gamut from villain to hero again, until he was [rather emotionally] killed off in 1995’s Godzilla vs. Destroyah. But, of course, sleeping kaijus don’t lie long,
The dawn of the new millennium brought about another half dozen films (I mean, you didn’t think Toho was going to take that Roland Emmerich abomination lying down, did you?), beginning with Godzilla 2000 (another soft reboot) and ending with 2004’s Godzilla: Final Wars, which was intended to be a 50th anniversary curtain call for the franchise, but is, in fact, more embarrassing than Die Another Day (despite featuring one particularly notable scene).
So, between the disappointment of Final Wars, and the many missteps of the 2014 American film, we need a good Godzilla movie. We deserve it. And it seems like Toho hired the right guys to do it. Writer/Director Hideaki Anno is the creative mind behind popular anime property Neon Genesis Evangelion (colloquially known as Eva), for which a proper explanation would require a dissertation, but in a nutshell it’s giant robots fighting giant monsters (also, never, ever, ever watch the last four episodes of Eva at 2:00am. It was the trippiest night of my life; I didn’t know whether I was dead or alive or awake or asleep). And, Co-director Shinji Higuchi also did some work on Eva, in addition to directing the recent Attack on Titan (more giant monsters) live-action films. Between these two guys, it’s a shoe-in that Shin Godzilla wouldn’t be a let down, right?
Right.
It pleases me greatly to say that not only is Shin Godzilla among the better films of 2016, it’s also one of the best Godzilla films ever made.
All I’ve ever wanted out of a Godzilla movie in my lifetime is a serious imagining of what it would look like if Godzilla appeared in the real world, and Shin Godzilla delivers this with aplomb. As much as I enjoy the ’84 reboot, it goes a little too far in the direction of fantastical science fiction with the “Super X” flying vehicle, but Shin Godzilla plays it about as straight as can be, even going as far as to show all of the layers of bureaucracy that need to be penetrated in order to effectively deal with the threat (pretty much Contagion with a giant monster instead of an epidemic, which is absolutely a compliment). All in all, it’s a rather fascinating look at Japan, what it means to be Japanese, their government, and their place in the geopolitical landscape; and, of course, all of this is coming in the light of a post-Tōhoku/Fukushima world (I’m sure there was a ton more of political/cultural/social commentary that went over my head as an American, but it was interesting nonetheless, even when they took not-so-subtle jabs at the U.S.).
As good as Shin Godzilla is, however (and it is good), I do have some criticisms; the primary one being that the subtitles get too intense at times, especially in the first fifteen minutes or so. I don’t have a problem with subtitles in general (obviously), and you do settle into something of a rhythm after a while, but there are multiple moments where a character’s name and position/title will appear at the top of the screen while dialogue simultaneously appears at the bottom, which is hard on the eyes (and the brain). I realize that this is more likely a distributor issue rather than an actual filmmaking problem, but I hope someone at Funmation (or whoever) figures out a more elegant solution in time for the eventual home format release.
In addition to some problematic subtitling, the movie itself has one or two strands that may or may not ever connect, a few of the characterizations seem a bit stilted, and, some of the effects don’t look as good as you’d like or expect them to (especially given that Japan is the world leader in cutting edge technology, at least as far as I know). And, let’s just be real here, for a franchise that built itself on guys in rubber suits stomping around while miniatures and models get “blowed-up real good,” it’s a little weird seeing a Godzilla movie (at least a Japanese one) that lacks the subtle charms of a guy in a rubber suit stomping around while miniatures and models get “blowed-up real good.”
However, as is so often the case, an engrossing story and a tight script, along with some brisk pacing (but not overly so), is strong enough to [mostly] make up for any deficiencies (I’d also be remiss if I didn’t give it credit for not getting caught up in needless melodrama).
Overall, Shin Godzilla is a definitively worthwhile theatrical experience, and there’s little question it makes up for the past twelve years of Godzilla-related disappointment. Unfortunately, it’s only getting a week’s release in the U.S., and it may be hard to come by, but if you can get to it, please, please hurry and get in there (I’m sure anything else you’d want to see this weekend will still be playing next weekend anyway, if you’ve got a case of FOMO).
It’s not often that fans get the movie they deserve (and also the one they need right now), but Shin Godzilla is an exceptional exception.
Rating: ★★★★☆
P.S.
Naturally, and as usual, the crew at Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers gets into the spirit of things.
UPDATE June 2017: Amazon is taking pre-orders for a Region 1 home release of the movie here.